7 Life-Changing, Non-Boring Spins on the To-Do List
The lists you aren’t making but should be.
Making lists helps us corral information and get our heads around big tasks.
But lists are still a tragically underused tool.
They’re great for productivity and big goals, sure, but when you get creative with them, that’s where the magic really happens.
Here are a few that you’re probably not making but that could make your life measurably better in ways you’ll be able to… list.
#1 Your (future) end-of-year accomplishments
Picture yourself in November or December.
What three to five things did you do over the course of the year, professionally, that made the year so amazing?
Note: You can do this for your personal life too.
Now, between these two end-of-year lists, you have six to 10 things that should be your top priorities for your year.
Every time you plan your weeks or your days, make sure you’re taking some steps to bring at least one of them to fruition.
#2 A “done” list
Make a “done” list each day listing the various things you’ve, well, done.
If this list contains items beyond your original to-do list, then you can add these items to your to-do list and immediately cross them off.
Is this a little silly?
Sure, but it’s oh so satisfying.
#3 A “later” list
If another task or idea or question occurs to you while you’re doing deep work, write it down on a “later” list.
Later, when you take a scheduled break, you can do that task.
But if you start looking in your inbox now, 20 minutes later, you’ll still be deleting newsletters you can’t remember subscribing to, and the “deep work” groove will be gone.
#4 A “do not buy” list
You walk down the toothpaste aisle, see your brand of toothpaste, and think, “Hey, we use that toothpaste! I’ll just grab a tube.” Great.
Except you’ve forgotten that you had that same thought during your last four visits to the grocery store, and you don’t go through a tube of toothpaste per week.
This error gets magnified at warehouse-type stores where, “Hey, there’s our cooking spray!” results in eight spray cans piling up in your pantry.
A “do not buy” list reminds you that you will not be able to fit more frozen waffles in your freezer space.
#5 A “last done” list
When did you last change the filters on the air conditioner, clean out the gutters, have your furnace serviced, get your oil changed, change the batteries on your smoke detector, or go to the dentist?
If you can’t remember “when did I last…” (or you share these duties), then you need a “last done” list.
This can take two forms: either a master list of when tasks were “last done” or, where appropriate, you could put the date near the item in question.
#6 A gift idea list
Every December, many of us puzzle and puzzle until our puzzlers are sore about what to give friends and family.
An ongoing gift list makes holiday time (and birthdays) much less stressful. Start a Google doc or put a page in your planner for gift ideas.
Whenever you have a good idea, jot it down.
When the relevant occasion roll around, you’ll have plenty to work with and a lot less angst.
#7 An “anytime fun” list
The problem with free time is that it’s often hard to seize.
When such time appears and we lack the energy to think of great things to do, we turn to whatever is easiest, even if this involves perusing Facebook posts from people we didn’t like in high school anyway.
An anytime fun list presents an alternative.
What easy, low-energy activities can you do at any time and that you’d enjoy more than Twitter?
Ideas might include jigsaw puzzles, reading poetry, taking a soak in the tub, coloring, flipping through coffee-table books on home design, texting friends, etc.
When you make this list, you can then figure out how to keep necessary materials handy (e.g., visiting the library every three weeks to check out those coffee-table books).
When you realize you’ve got a free 15 minutes, you can pull something from this list and immediately start enjoying that time.